The Great Big Halloween House of Horrors Bike Blog Roundup

Ah Halloween, time to swap the bike for a classic vintage broom and go out and scare yourself silly with such horrors as the latest terrifying think-tank idea (although look what happened to one of the first privatised roads), an out-of-control bike shop - or what passes for an apology from Derby's 'shoulda gone to Dignitas' councillor. We can shudder at the thought of cycling in Yemen and the perils of segregated roads. We can even get the shivers in Denmark, where the great god traffic flow remains king, despite everything, bikes are forced to wait for cars and, er, cobblestones lurk everywhere, although, to be honest, most of us would be happy to have Copenhagen's problems - and they can have our roads.

Without making light of a tragedy that claimed far too many lives, Hurricane Sandy did come with a bike shaped silver lining; as noted by sources as diverse as the Wall Street Journal, Bike Portland, Bloomberg and Transitized, bikes' resilence and flexibility makes them the cockroaches of disaster (but in a good way). Not only were they forming replacement train services, they were bringing that modern day essential: mobile-phone charging. Could this be end to controversy over the city's bike lanes? And will it bring about real lasting change? Pedal on Parliament certainly hopes Edinburgh will learn some of what New York has to teach us - and fortunately the city authorities have been measuring outcomes properly, to make a robust case.

With road tax rearing its ugly head again - and paltry amounts going on cycling, most of which is wasted - now might be a good time to remind governments (again) of the true cost of driving to the economy despite the undervaluing of cycling. Perhaps we should just pay people to cycle), but then even a prohibitive tax doesn't seem to deter Danish drivers, while the downside of dressing for the destination might be that local businesses don't value the bike (do we need a 'take your lycra to the shops' day?). Meanwhile one man attempts to sell cycling to the Dutch - and in England no less - to bring thousands into the UK economy. They should look out for potholes, though, because they won't be used to them.

When it comes to campaigning, what can we learn from Starbucks? Certainly there seemed to be a variety of approaches on offer this week, from the traditional to the somewhat more offbeat/ The Cambridge Cycling Campaign considers following Spokes's lead in not promoting events that promote helmets. Copenhagenize suggests a monument to lost livesin an unused monument to the car culture. In Texas they're 'building better blocks' while in London Help My Chain Came Off is donning her sherrif's badge and becoming an active travel champion. One year on, the Urban Country looks at their 'i share the road' sticker campaign while Sexify Bicycles wonders exactly what that means. Cycle Space considers how Australia and the Netherlands diverged (this doesn't really help) while Egypt begins to consider how to catch up, and Seville campaigners celebrate 25 years of going against the traffic.

They also campaign, of course, who simply respond to consultation exercises (however bogus the schedule), with this week's diligent consultees including Rachel Aldred writing to the Crown Prosecution Service, As Easy as Riding a Bike taking the A24 'improvements' apart yard by yard, Freewheeler dissecting the Waltham Forest cycling plan and Sam Saunders considering the future of Bristol's ancient heart. Kim Harding was also putting fingers to keyboard - twice, writing to the BBC and his MSPs. While Pedal on Parliament has some questions for the minister, in Northern Ireland it turns out everyone - and no-one - is responsible for cycling. Elections, of course, are the only consultation exercise that really matters, and Croydon Cyclists were busy questioning their prospective MPs while with the US presidential election looming, Streetsblog considers the incumbent's record

One of the joys of the bike blogosphere is how much we can learn from eachother, with Dallas having some lessons for London and the Netherlands having lessons for everyone, but especially Belfast's planners. As Easy as Riding a Bike could do with some enlightenment on what exactly the Hierarchy of Provision means while Transitized considers what makes a complete street. In an eye-opening, in every sense, post, London Cyclist explains that Smidsy may genuinely not have seen you while the BBC's Berlin correspondent's eyes are opened to a city where it's people, rather than hipsters or eco-warriors, who cycle. If your thirst for knowledge contunes there are stil places available for the Livable London transport and public health masterclass - while the Copenhagenize Kickstand sessions are returning to North America, Colorado cyclists are asked to help shape a city's cycling network and the ECF interviews the author behind the latest infrastructure safety study. Meanwhile, obvious as it may be, the lesson keeps needing to be learned: separated bike lanes lead to more bikes, fewer cars, fewer accidents.

Unlike in the UK where 100th cyclist this year dies on the UK's roads - snd our official stats may be hiding the real risks. Drawing rings considers the gender dimensions of road safety while Ed Miliband would just like to see safe places for his wife to cycle - showing a better grasp of road safety issues than Nottingham's MPs. Road.cc asks if we need to stop turning the clocks back and Downfader reminds us of the hidden hazards of autumn. Of course it would help if cyclists even got considered in a junction design - or if they just didn't put the helpful bike warning signs in the damn bike lane. Psychobikeology wonders if telling drivers their speed works (we think it would be more effective if it told them they were nicked). Three years and three grand later, one cyclistgets a little justice while Chafe City considers accidents and aftermaths

Despite safety concerns - and the cold - family cycling is still where it's at, with every mother needing a tandem not a family car. That said, there are still terrible sacrifices to be made to keep your family cycling. Like having bike bloggers stalking your school run, perhaps...

But let us end on a cheerful note, with vulnerable road users (that's 'people', basically) suffering fewer casualties if only because they were staying in out of the rain, while a hit and run driver's sentence is doubled on appeal. Bicycle Dutch dug up three charming little snippets from the bike lanes while one racing cyclist shows sporting conduct of the highest order

And finally - whatever you do, don't tell Boris, or he'll be wanting one too.